Harvey, Gordon E. 1967–

(Gordon Earl Harvey)

PERSONAL: Born April 9, 1967, in Birmingham, AL; son of Gordon Lee and Georgia Ann (a manager; maiden name, Stewart) Harvey; married Marie Mignon Horn (a teacher), July 28, 1990; children: Preston Stewart, Hudson Andrews. Ethnicity: "White." Education: Auburn University, B.S. (marketing), 1989, Ph.D., 1998; University of Alabama at Birmingham, B.S. (education), M.A., 1994. Politics: Independent. Religion: Protestant. Hobbies and other interests: Politics, collecting political buttons, baseball.

ADDRESSES: Office—Department of History, University of Louisiana at Monroe, 700 University Ave., Monroe, LA 71209.

CAREER: Writer and educator. Auburn University, Auburn, AL, visiting instructor, 1998–99; University of Louisiana at Monroe, Monroe, assistant professor,1999–2004, L.M. McKneely Professor of Humanities, 2004–.

MEMBER: Louisiana Historical Association (member of board of directors).

WRITINGS:

(Coauthor) A Question of Justice: New South Governors and Education, 1968–1976, University of Alabama Press (Tuscaloosa, AL), 2002.

Contributor to books, including Paradise Lost? The Environmental History of Florida, University Press of Florida (Gainesville, FL), 2005. Contributor to periodicals, including Gulf South Historical Review and Alabama Review; contributor of political and election analyses to television news programs, print news agencies, and newspapers.

WORK IN PROGRESS: An Easy Man to Believe In: Reubin Askew and the Rise of Modern Florida, an exploration of the political career of the Florida governor (1971–79) and the modernization of Florida politics, economy, and society during his administration; research on the South of the 1970s, "the decade when the region became 'acceptable' in the eyes of the rest of the nation as its culture, society, and political changes were celebrated and highlighted with the election of Jimmy Carter as president;" research on environmental politics in the "New South," and on the impact of organizations and individuals on the southern political process relative to environmental policy in the Sunbelt South.

SIDELIGHTS: Gordon E. Harvey told CA: "I love the research process—the search for new information, a new truth to be learned and disseminated. The writing process is enjoyable, but I still find putting those first words on paper a torture. Once I have done so, I love the process. My best work is usually done when I have a nice amount of background noise. I frequent local coffee shops with my laptop and note cards, put on earphones, and write until I get tired—losing myself in my work while the world around me goes on."

"I benefited from the teaching of my history professors in graduate school. Professional to the core, they were all excellent teachers and writers whose research informed their teaching. Their passion for the craft of history inspired me to enter this field and to emulate their success."